33 STARS IN AN INTERESTING VARIATION OF THE "GREAT STAR" CONFIGURATION, MADE FOR THE 1860 CAMPAIGN OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN & HANNIBAL HAMLIN, WITH WHIMSICAL SERPENTINE TEXT

Available:

Sold

Frame Size (H x L):

22" x 28"

Flag Size (H x L):

11" x 17"

Description....:

33 star American parade flag, printed on glazed cotton, and made for the 1860 campaign of Abraham Lincoln and Hannibal Hamlin. Note the combination of the bold and whimsical, block-printed lettering with its serpentine format and this beautiful variation of what is called the "Great Star" configuration, a large star made out of smaller stars.

Among printed parade flags, those made for the political campaign of President Lincoln are, collectively, the most desired. On this particular flag, the words Lincoln & Hamlin are overprinted in black across the field of stripes. This means that the advertising was added to the flag after the red and blue were printed. This was the standard practice, though some advertising flags have verbiage (as well as symbols and portraits) that are printed simultaneously with the blue used in the canton.

Great Star designs take on many forms. In this particular example, note that there is a star between each arm of the large star and that there is a triangle of three stars in the very center. Among collectors, the Great Star represents the Rolls Royce of geometric star configurations. It is thought to have come about shortly after the War of 1812, when Congressman Peter Wendover of New York requested that Captain Samuel Reid, a War of 1812 naval hero, create a new design that would become the third official format of the Stars & Stripes. A recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor, Reid became harbor master of New York following the war. During his lifetime, he created many innovations in signal use, including a system that could actually send messages from New York to New Orleans by sea in just two hours.

Use as a Naval signal had been the primary reason for the initial creation of an American national flag in 1777, but since there was no official star configuration, the appearance of our flag varied greatly. Reid's primary concern centered on both consistency and ease of recognition. His hope was that as more and more states joined the Union, and more stars were subsequently added to the flag, that the design would remain easily identified on the open seas. In 1818 Reid suggested to Congress that the number of stripes permanently return to 13 (reduced from 15) and that the stars be grouped into the shape of one large star. Reid’s proposal would have kept the star constellation in roughly the same format, in a pattern that could be quickly identified through a spyglass as the number of states grew. His concept for the stripes was ultimately accepted, but his advice on the star pattern was rejected by President James Monroe, due to the increased cost of arranging the stars in what would become known as the “Great Star”, “Great Flower”, or “Great Luminary” pattern. Monroe probably didn’t wish to impose this cost on either the government or civilians, so he suggested a simple pattern of justified rows. The Great Star was nevertheless produced by anyone willing to make it and its rarity today, along with its beauty, has driven the desirability of American flags with variants of this beautiful design.

The 33rd state, Oregon, entered the Union on February 14th, 1859. The 33 star flag was official from 1859-1861, and was thus still the official flag when Ft. Sumter was fired upon, on April 12th of that year. This event marked the beginning of the Civil War and a 33 star flag was flying at Ft. Sumter during the attack. Because the 34th state, Kansas, had already acquired statehood on January 29th, 1861, flag makers knew that the 34 star flag would soon become official. For this reason, 33 star flags were not produced in great quantity for the war, which would last until 1865, and the 33 can be considered to be more of a pre-Civil war flag than a war-period flag. 33’s are considerably more rare than 34 and 35 star examples.

Flags made prior to the Civil War comprise less than one percent of 19th century flags that have survived into the 21st century. Prior to the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter, the Stars & Stripes was simply not used for most of the same purposes we employ it in today. Private individuals did not typically display the flag in their yards and on their porches. Parade flags didn't often fly from carriages and horses. Places of business rarely hung flags in their windows. Private use of the national flag rose swiftly during the patriotism that accompanied the Civil War, then exploded in 1876.

Even the military did not use the flag in a manner that most people might think. The primary purpose before the Civil War was to mark ships on the open seas. While the flag was used to mark some garrisons, the flags of ground troops were often limited to the flag of their own regiment and a Federal standard. Most people would be surprised to learn that the infantry wasn’t authorized to carry the Stars & Stripes until 1837. Even then it was neither required nor customary. It was not until the Civil War took place that most U.S. ground forces carried the national flag.

An example of this flag is recorded in "Threads of History: Americana Recorded on Cloth, 1775 to the Present," by Herbert Ridgeway Collins (1979, Smithsonian Press), item 296, p. 158. Collins formerly served as Curator of Political History at the Smithsonian Institution and his book is considered the foremost reference on American political textiles.

Don’t be fooled by the seemingly backwards orientation. In the 19th century, the same flag ethics that exist today (which developed around the turn-of-the-century), did not exist. So in the mid 19th century, this was every bit as correct as what we now think of as a “forwards” and ethical manner of display.

It is interesting to note that Lincoln was hardly the favorite at the beginning of the campaign, winning the Republican nomination from the 3rd ticket. He then defeated John Bell (Constitution Party), John Breckinridge (Southern Democrat), and Stephen Douglas (Northern Democrat), to become the Republican party’s first president. Lincoln was elected with a mere thirty-nine percent of the vote and carried no state south of the Mason-Dixon line.

Hannibal Hamlin, our nation’s first Republican vice president, was born in Maine in 1809. He was an attorney who, in his political career prior to the White House, served as Chairman of the Maine State House of Representatives, as a U.S. Congressman and Senator, and as Governor of the State of Maine. He was a Democrat until 1856, but was an opponent to slavery. He did not run with Lincoln in the second campaign in 1864, but did return to the U.S. Senate from 1869-1881 and served as Minister to Spain from 1881-82.

Mounting: The exceptional, gilded American molding has a rippled profile and dates to the period between 1830 and 1860. The flag has been hand-stitched to 100% cotton twill, black in color, which was washed to reduce excess dye. An acid-free agent was added to the wash to further set the dye and the fabric was heat-treated for the same purpose. The glazing is U.V. protective plexiglass. The work was completed in our own conservation department, which is led by masters degree trained staff. We take great care in the mounting and preservation of flags and have framed thousands of examples; more than anyone worldwide.

Condition: There is minor foxing and staining throughout, accompanied by minor to moderate fading. There are slight irregularities in the printing of the back text. There is a moderate tear with associated loss in the upper hoist end corner in the first red stripe and in the white area above it. period parade flag fabrics of similar coloration were placed behind this area for masking purposes. There is some irregularity to the trimming of the hoist area adjacent to the canton. There is minor fraying along the top hoist edges. Many of my clients prefer early flags to show their age and history of use. The flag presents beautifully and the great desirability of Lincoln campaign flags warrants almost any condition.

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About Jeff Bridgman

As the nation's largest seller of early Stars & Stripes and political textiles, antique American flags are my foremost business. As a serious collector and dealer of 19th century paint-decorated furniture, folk art and textiles, American Fancy is my foremost love. As a American patriot, the convergence of these closely related fields has led to a life-long pursuit of the most colorful, rare, and magnificent examples. I hope you enjoy the pages herein.